Happy Valentine's Day

Call me sappy. Call me a romantic. Call me corny. I am doing it anyway. It feels most appropriate to do it today on Valentine's Day. It seems even more fitting considering we are spending the night at a hotel on the beach just a few hundred yards from the exact spot my wife and I got married almost 6 years ago. (Tonight we will be attending another wedding just down the beach.)
So today's blog is dedicated to my wife. She is so amazing and inspiring that there is no way I could every truly tell her how much she means to me. I will do my best to put in writing, but no words can really convey how wonderful she really is. Since I am already going the cliche route, I might as well go all the way with it and do it in the form of a top ten list. So here are the top ten things that I love about my wife.

10. Her compassion. She is always looking out for and caring for other people, even strangers. Recently she started to keep large Ziploc bags filled with food and water in our cars to give out to any homeless people we see while we are out driving. So far we have given out at least a dozen and are hoping to keep it going. Next week she will be going to Tallahassee with the American Cancer Society to advocate for cancer patients. She is always trying to help some one.

9. Her courage. She has survived cancer twice and has been with me every step of the way through all my health issues. Enough said.

8. Her persistence. She never gives up and never stops until the job is done and done right.

7. Her ability to light up a room. I love walking into a party with her, because for some reason people seem to light up when they see her.

6. Her ability to make friends any where. Cashiers, customer service reps, receptionists, clients, it doesn't matter. She is constantly making friends. She has several good friends she met online and talks with them like they have known each other since grade school.

5. The way she makes me want to do better. She inspires me never to settle and to always reach for the stars.

4. The way she makes me laugh. Lately she has been singing a lot. And I mean a lot. She doesn't sing songs though. She sings her sentences. She says she is just happy. Whatever the reason, she makes me laugh.

3. She is more adventurous then even she thinks. Here are some examples. The numerous times she climbs to the tops of things only to then realize that she is afraid of heights (Red Rocks Canyon, Rock climbing and jumping off the bridge in Tennessee.) She once hiked an entire trail in her Ugg sandals. She always has to wait for "one more wave" when we go surfing.

2. That fact that the hardest part about this list was narrowing it down to only 10 things.

1. She is without question, my soul mate. We finish each other sentence with way too much frequency, often times saying the exact, completely random thing the other is thinking. We are the perfect balance for each other. I am very laid back and she has been known to stress out every once in a while. The worst day of my life was one night before one of her surgeries that I was confronted with the fact that she may not make it. I could not imagine living a single day with out her.

There you go. I could go on and on, but I have a wedding to get ready for.

To my amazing wife;

I love you more then I could ever tell you and I thank God every day for putting you in my life. I am looking forward to moving onto our next step in life together, and many, many more.

P.S. Does this get me off the hook for not getting you anything for Valentine's Day?